


Secrets...Revealed...?

by BeastialMoon



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Comedy, Episode Like, Fluff, alya gets all mixed up, but very close to being like an episode, not canon, very close call but no identity reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-07
Updated: 2016-06-01
Packaged: 2018-05-25 09:02:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6188389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeastialMoon/pseuds/BeastialMoon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alya has studied sleuthing techniques for a few months now, trying to find the secret identity of Ladybug. It was only a matter of time before the pieces came together. But even Alya couldn’t have guessed who the evidence would point to.</p><p>After all, it’s not as if someone tampered with her notes, right?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In Which Marinette tampers with evidence

8 months. That’s how long the Ladyblog had been up and running. 8 months to the day, Paris had been saved for the first time by the incredible superhero duo Ladybug and Chat Noir. The event sparked the reporter in Alya wide open, and she quickly put her brain to use trying to discover the civilians behind the masks.  
After almost an entire school year, it looks like she might have finally done it, too. She had all her notes currently compiled on her phone and linked with her computer, so she could edit them at any time. Her blog ran hundreds of videos and photos of the 2 super heroes. Everything from new reports, bystander phone clips, and even one or two exclusive interviews.

8 months of photos, news reports, videos, and her own personal collection of clues from various battles she had been witness to all were leading up to this moment.

“Do you really think you’re close to discovering Ladybug’s secret identity, Alya?” asked her blue-haired best friend, Marinette. The two of them were currently in the reporter’s room, computer on and folder open to Ladybug evidence. Marinette laid lounging on a light brown bean bag chair, watching as her reporter friend typed frantically at the keys.

“I’m positive I’m close!” Alya replied confidently, keys not once moving out of sync with the keyboard. “After that last Akuma attack, there were some pretty big clues. All of which, of course, will need to be fine-tuned before making a sure decision.”

Marinette gave a reluctant grin. “That’s great, Alya!” she said with a thumbs up. 

Alya’s mom’s voice called out from the floor below. “Alya, come help your sister with the table!”

Alya sighed. “Sit tight, alright? I’ll be back in a few minutes.” And with that, Alya descended the stairs.

As soon as she was out of sight, Tikki burst from Marinette’s purse. 

“This is not good!” she cried “If Alya discovers who you are, that would be disastrous!”

“I know, Tikki! But what am I supposed to do?” cried Marinette in to her hands. “It’s not like I can mislead her any more. She somehow just keeps getting closer and… closer…”

A slow realization hit Marinette’s brain as she looked at the dull light of the monitor.

“Desperate times call for desperate measures.” She said. She jumped on the chair, and started going through the first few documents she found.

“Alya, please forgive me.” Marinette whispered as she began editing the documents in small and subtle ways. From hair styles to personalities, no file was left completely untouched.

A few minutes later, the sounds of footsteps stomping came up the stairs. Quick as a bug, she saved and closed the documents before jumping back on to the bean bag chair. She grabbed her phone out of her purse and opened it up to the nearest app.

Marinette looked up as her friend’s face came in to view. 

“Hey, Alya,” she said “My parents need me over at the bakery really quick. You don’t mind if I take off, do you?”

Alya just laughed. “No way, girl! I know how parents can be. Go on, I’ll be fine!” 

Marinette smiled. She put her phone to her face and pretended to talk to her mom as she ran downstairs and out the door. As soon as she turned the corner from the house, she stopped talking and dropped the phone from her face. Making sure nobody was around, Marinette started speaking to the red kwami in her purse.

“I really don’t feel very good about this, Tikki.” She said. “I know Ladybug is supposed to stay a secret, but lying to Alya like this just doesn’t feel right.” 

Tikki burst from the purse and hovered in front of Marinette’s face. “I know it might not seem right, but sometimes we have to do things that don’t feel right to protect a greater purpose. Things will be ok, Marinette! Trust me!”

Marinette sighed. “I hope you’re right, Tikki.”

\----------------¡MIRACULOUS!-----------------

Marinette was walking up the steps to her classroom when she heard Alya’s confused voice mumbling behind her. She looked back to see her friend flipping through her phone like a madwoman.

“Uhhhh, are you ok, Alya?” Marinette asked “You look a little flustered.”

“Fine! I’m fine!” Alya shouted. Marinette raised an eyebrow.

“Ugh. Sorry, Marinette. It’s just – this doesn’t make any sense!” the reporter apologized

“What, did you not figure out Ladybug’s identity yet?” she asked

Alya shook her head. “No, I DID. But it doesn’t make sense!”

A bead of sweat trickled down Marinette’s forehead. “W-w-what do you mean, you figured it out? Who-o is it?”  
Alya looked at her friend with a look of utter seriousness in her eyes. 

“Oh, no, Marinette, I’m NOT giving this away until they want it. I can sort of understand why they would want to keep their identity a secret, now.”

“O-oh? Really?” Marinette was fully panicking on the inside. Alya probably knew it was her and was just trying to goad her in to confessing. Before Marinette could speak up again, the bell rang, and both classmates ran inside to their seats.

The day progressed as normally as any other sans-akuma day did. Lunch, however, was a little different. Usually, Marinette and Alya would either eat in the park or at one of their houses. But with the knowledge of Ladybug’s identity fresh in Alya’s mind, she had to decline eating with her friend for one day.

Marinette forgave her friend, and walked to her parent’s bakery so she could stew away from everyone else in her own guilt.

Alya, meanwhile, began following a certain blond haired model.

\----------------¡MIRACULOUS!-----------------

FLUSSSSHHHH.

The noise echoed across the pristine bathroom. A green stall door clicked open, and Adrien Agreste walked out, completely oblivious to the only other person in the room. He turned the faucet on and began to wash his hands when a distinctly female voice spoke out.

“Adrien, we need to talk” spoke Alya. Adrien nearly jumped out of his skin as he turned to look at her.

“What on earth are you doing here, Alya!? This is the men’s room!” he criticized

Alya just rolled her eyes. “Oh, don’t be such a boy.”

“No, really, Alya. What are you doing here?” he questioned

“I’m sorry, Adrien, but I really needed to talk to you in private. This was the best I could do at such short notice.” Alya apologized

“Well, alright, I guess." he said "What did you need to talk about?”

Alya walked closer to him. “I know your secret, Adrien Agreste.” She said

 _Oh, no. thought Adrien._

“W-what secret? I don’t have any secrets!” he babbled. Alya just looked at him with concern.

“Oh, honey, it’s ok, I promise I won’t tell anyone if you don’t want me to.” She continued.

‘ _Oh, NO. She DOES know. How did she find out? What did I do wrong? How does she know that I’m-_ ’?

“I know you’re the secret identity of Ladybug, Adrien Agreste.”

Adrien.exe has stopped working.  
Adrien.exe is assessing the problem.  
Rerouting…  
>Running diagnostics  
>error found. Words do not compute. Please reenter the statement.

“Wait, what?”


	2. In which a lot of talking is done

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bathroom confrontations and late night escapades

“I know you’re the secret identity of Ladybug, Adrien Agreste.”

Well, those were words he had certainly never expected to hear. Maybe somebody finding out he was Chat Noir, sure, but Ladybug? How on earth did Alya manage that one?

Adrien remained unresponsive as he tried to rationalize the situation. How would he convince Alya he wasn’t Ladybug, while also not giving his real secret away?

“Uh, Adrien? Adrien, are you still with me?”

Obviously he couldn’t just come out and say _hey, guess what! I’m actually Chat Noir! Want to see?_ That would not go well for anyone involved.  
Not to mention if Alya managed to talk to the real Ladybug, (which with their track record, was bound to happen within the week), Ladybug would be completely flummoxed at what was going on.

“Look, Adrien, it’s ok. I didn’t tell anyone else it’s you.”

Oh, god, how on earth was he going to get out of this? This is worse than his first day at school. At least that he could salvage. This was like being on a train wreck and losing the brake.  
“Adrien, please, speak to me. Come on, say something!”

Oh, right. Alya was still here. She was speaking, wasn’t she?

“Oh, uh, sorry, Alya. I was just, ah – thinking. How did you manage to figure that one out?” he apologized.

The reporter sighed in relief. “I’ve been taking notes on all your fights, as you know, and all the details finally started matching up last night. You practice fencing, which is incredibly helpful in knowing how to use your Yo-Yo. Ladybug mentioned in an interview I did with her, ah, _you_ , that she studied sword fighting techniques. You are very creative when it comes to solutions, and you’re very confident both in and out of mask. Not to mention the fact that you’re never in the same room as her, and your excuses are pretty lazy.”

“I can refute 2 of those.” Said Adrien “I fence, yes, but it’s not exactly helpful with string tensile physics, no matter how magic the Yo-yo is, there has to be a certain amount of force put in to everything to make it work. That’s why Ladybug uses it as a pulley system.”

“See, that’s what I’m talking about!” Alya exclaimed “You’re great at knowing how that stuff works! Way TOO good, if you ask me.” Adrien huffed at his argument being shot down before he even got to point two.

“Alya, what’s it going to take for me to convince you I’m not Ladybug?” he asked

“It’s too late, Adrien, I already know. And like I said, if you want to be a magical girl, it’s ok. You shouldn’t be ashamed of being who you want to be. I support you, and I know Marinette and Nino will too.”  
Adrien smiled. Clearly he wasn’t going to be able to reason with someone’s data, no matter how misleading it was.

“Well, I’m NOT Ladybug, but thanks for the sentiment, I guess.” He said. Alya just winked at him.

“NOT Ladybug. Sure. I getcha. I won’t tell.” She made a zipping motion over her lips. She glanced at her phone.

“Oh, shoot, lunch is almost over. We should run back to class!” said Alya, running out of the boy’s room. Adrien just stayed standing there, wondering how on earth he was going to tell the real Ladybug about this the next time they met.

\------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! ------------------------

 

Adrien was right. It wasn’t even a week before the next Akuma attack. In fact, it wasn’t even a day.

Apparently, some blonde haired girl (three guesses as to WHO) had sabotaged another student’s science fair project, causing the student to lose. In a fit of rage, The Lab Rat was trapping everybody in giant beakers and testing equipment so that they could finish.

Ladybug had already used her Lucky Charm, trapping Lab Rat in a giant flask.

“The Akuma’s in the pen around his neck!” Shouted Ladybug

“I’m on it, Buggy!” Chat shouted back, going in close to grab it. The pen tore off the 8-foot white rat’s neck with ease, and he threw it over to Ladybug.  
“Please, Bugaboo, let’s be more than Pen Pals!” he joked. 

“Sorry, Kitty, I’m afraid I have to break it off!” Ladybug grinned. Chat beamed as his lady captured the Akuma. 

“Well, that’s that then, Chat Noir. I’ll see you around!” Ladybug turned and was about to lasso her way out of the school when Chat Noir grabbed her arm.

“Wait, before you go, I need to talk to you. I know we don’t have much time, but it’s important. So can I talk to you tonight?”

Ladybug stopped spinning her Yo-Yo. “Sure, Chat. Usual?”

Chat nodded. “Works for me.” He said. “See you around 10?”

The superhero smiled and agreed as their Miraculous’ started frantically beeping. Ladybug lassoed a railing and zipped out of the school while Chat Noir used his pole to vault out the opposite way.  
Tonight was going to be interesting.

\------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! ------------------------

Their ‘usual’ was, of course, the Eiffel Tower. Both of them sat on one of the middle cross beams, away from any tourists at the top and bottom. Chat dangled his legs over the edge, swinging them back and forth as he waited for his lady. The predicament he was in with Alya shouldn’t be too hard to fix. All it took was a bit of good timing.

A red blur swung closer in the distance. A small smile lit up Chat’s face as he watched Ladybug swing towards him. Ladybug had always been more graceful in traveling long distances than he was, but he didn’t have a problem with that. It let him get a chance to watch her movements in action - the way her legs swung behind her with ease, the way her arm muscles tightened as she held on to her tool. He would not be surprised at all if she was a dancer in her civilian form.

“You wanted to see me, Chat Noir?” said Ladybug as she sat down on the sloping crossbeam beside him.

Chat sighed. “Yeah, I’ve got a bit of a problem. It seems someone has found out your secret identity-”

Ladybug’s face went white and her pupils shrank to the size of marbles. “What!” she shouted, interrupting her partner. “Wha-who! How? We’ve got to fix this!” 

Chat grabbed her hand. “Whoa, whoa, hey! It’s ok! Let me finish!”

Ladybug calmed down and nodded for Chat to continue.

“A certain reporter at Collège Françoise Dupont managed to figure out who Ladybug’s identity is, but she’s wrong. The problem is, I can’t convince her she’s wrong because she thinks it’s ME.”

The gears in Ladybug’s head started turning. “Wait, so she thinks your civilian identity is my secret identity?” She asked.

Chat nodded. “Yeah, so you can see the dilemma here.”

Ladybug laughed. “Oh, this is hilarious! I’m half tempted to let it go.”

Now it was Chat’s turn to turn white. “What! No, bugaboo, you can’t!” he exclaimed

“Oh, don’t worry, kitty, I’m not actually going to.” She giggled as she flicked his bell. “I just find this all really funny. I trust you have a plan?”

Chat sighed in relief. “Yeah. At 10:15 tomorrow, can you make an appearance in the football field at the college? The reporter and my identity should both be there at the same time, so she’ll be able to see that I’m not, well, you.”

“Simple plan. Shouldn’t be too hard.” She agreed. “I’ll be there.”

Chat smiled. “Thank you so much, Ladybug!” 

“No problem, Chat Noir. I’ve got to get going, got some studying to do. See you tomorrow night?”

Chat nodded. “Yeah, sounds good!”

And with that, she swung off the tower, leaving a smiling Chat in her wake.

 _’Everything was going to be fine,’_ Chat thought as he stared up at the moon.  
_’It’s all going to work out,’_.


	3. In Which a lot of bad luck happens

Adrien would yawn if he wasn’t so nervous. History class was so utterly _boring_ , and with his home school education being as thorough as it was, he knew most of what they were being taught already. Normally he would use this period as an opportunity to catch some Z’s. Alya’s constant shoulder watching and her whispered conversation with Marinette, however, prevented him from completely drifting off. Adrien knew he could trust Alya not to tell anybody his _“Secret”,_ even Marinette, but it still put him on edge. He’d never had to trust someone else with this big of a thing before, even if it was completely false.

He could deny any allegations that came his way all he wanted, but Alya had a stronger reputation as a reporter than he did. There was nothing he could do until gym class. Which brings him here, yawn less, in one of the most redundant and boring history lessons he’s ever endured.

“So it was with great fervor that King George…”

_UUUUUUUGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH_

 

\---------------------- ¡MIRACULOUS! -----------------

 

10:15. Gym class finally came. Adrien walked to the locker room, intent on being visible with Ladybug as much as possible.

“I’m sorry, Alya, it’s an emergency!” he heard Marinette say. “My parents even gave me permission to skip gym today. You know there’s that big order coming in tonight.”  
  
“Girl, it’s cool. Chill. I’ll cover for you, no problem.” Alya replied

Adrien didn’t stay to hear the rest of the conversation, opting instead to continue in to the locker room.  
The silver sheen of the locker doors entered his visage before assaulting him with the wondrous odor that is the male locker room.  
The faint haze of steam lingered in the air from the shower area.

 

Adrien placed his book bag on the handle of the locker while he started to change. Plagg flew out from under Adrien’s jacket.

“Be quick, will you? This room always smells.” Plagg said

“Still not as bad as your camembert.” Adrien smirked.

At that moment, he happened to glance up. On top of the locker was a light blue and black backpack.

“Hey, someone left their bag here!” he said. He reached up to grab it, balancing on the toes of his feet.

 

MEANWHILE IN THE SHOWERS

 

Jerome was not having a good day. His bagels burnt, he was late to school, and his homework was still on his desk at home. The gym shower was the best thing that had happened to him all day. He leaned his forehead against the wall, closing his eyes and just letting the water run down his back. He wished he could stay like this forever. Fate, however, decided to have other plans.

The white bar soap, slick with suds, slipped out of his hand. It bounced* out of the shower area, off a lamp and Jerome never saw it again.

Jerome would have given an exasperated sigh, but at this point, he just didn’t care anymore. Cursing under his breath, he turned off the water, got dressed, and left the room.

ADRIEN

He could _JUST_ barely reach the bag. His fingers slipped on the tip of the strap. He leaned up a little higher on his toes to grasp it. He didn’t notice the bar soap that had landed under his foot.

“Uh, Adrien?” Plagg said

“Just a moment, Plagg, I almost got it!” Adrien replied. He grabbed the bag, finally holding the strap in his hand. “Hah! I got it!”

“Adrien! Don’t-” but it was too late. The blonde model put his feet back down on the ground, only to find the soap bar under his feet. The sudden pressure caused the bar to rocked out from under him, taking Adrien’s feet for the ride. Adrien didn’t even have time to correct his stance as the ground rushed up to the back of his head.

Plagg floated above the boy’s head. “Adrien? Adrien? Wake up!” the Kwami shouted

It was no use. The boy was out cold.

Plagg groaned as he crossed his tiny arms. “Well, I guess he’s just going to have to lay there like a cheese wheel. Hopefully nothing happens…”

 

\---------------------- ¡MIRACULOUS! -----------------

 

Somehow, in the entire half hour, nobody had seen Adrien passed out on the floor. He only came to when a cacophony of hoots and whistles resonated just outside the locker room door. Eyes fluttering open, Adrien laid still, head pounding. He looked over at the clock on the wall.

10:45. Gym was just about over.

"Crap, crap, crap!" Adrien shouted, rushing to his feet. He stopped for a moment to re-orient himself as a dizzying spell washed over him. Shaking his head, he walked over to the door and opened it to the field.

Hand over his eyes to keep the sun out, he gave a light jog over to the rest of his friends.

 

“Adrien, where were you, dude!?” Nino asked “You totally missed Ladybug!”

Adrien grimaced. “Sorry, Nino. I slipped on some soap or something in the locker room and kind of knocked myself out.”

“You ok, bro? Do you need to see the nurse?” Nino asked concernedly

Adrien shook his head. “No, I should be fine. Other than a light headache, I’m good. If dad finds out I hurt myself here, he’d never let me come back.”

 

Nino nodded. "Yeah, that's really unfortunate. Still, you should get it looked at, just to be sure."

 

Reluctantly, Adrien agreed. He walked back in to the school, this time with the rest of the class. Alya, casually standing by the door with a foot up on the wall, gave a quick smirk and wink as he walked by.

Adrien groaned.

 

_Well, that plan's botched._


	4. In Which Alya goes shopping for Adrien

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Penultimate chapter.

Secrets… Revealed…?

Chapter 4

 

Adrien and Nino walked down the front steps of the school building.

“Can you believe that teach? Two whole pages on atomic charge! How are we supposed to do that in one night?” Nino complained.

Adrien gave a small chuckle. “I’m sure it won’t be that bad. It’s actually kind of interesting.”

Nino laughed. “Well, of course, YOU would say that. You sure you didn’t study this subject ahead? You really seemed to know all about negative energy in the electro-mo-whatzits.”

Adrien shook his head and raised the flat of his hand. “Agreste’s honor, I have not read ahead. And they’re called electrons.”

Nino just laughed. “Whatever, dude. You may be a rich boy, but you’re a huge nerd.”

Adrien smirked. The blonde looked down the steps at the limo waiting for him. “I better get going.” He said.

Nino patted him on the back with a grin. “See you tomorrow, dude!”

Adrien watched Nino wave as the limousine drove away from the school.

\-------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! -------------------------

Alya walked down the street, phone in hand.  She looked up at the crosswalk, waiting for the light. She tapped her foot, waiting patiently as the red stop light glared across the street. A stray hair blew in to her vision, and with a huff, it blew away.

Only to fall back in front of her eyes with a larger strand. Alya put her phone in her pocket and straightened her hair. As she did, a different shade of red caught her attention in a store window.

A few houses down, there was a large window. It jutted out from the house, showcasing the clothing inside. On the display was a red and black spotted dress, obviously inspired by Ladybug’s costume. It hung straight down, but also managed to gently hug the mannequin’s waist.

Ignoring the light as it changed to GO, Alya turned directions and walked towards the store. A small bell rang as she opened the white door. Inside was a collection of dresses, tuxedos, and costumes. A stair went up a few steps and then turned to the left, following a banister ledge for a few feet before going up in to the second floor.

“I’ll be with you in a moment, dearie!” came a woman’s voice from behind the counter, bent down underneath.

“Jerome! Get DOWN HERE!” the woman shouted as she stood up. A red and brown snake slithered around in her hand as she held it away from her. “Your PET is out of its CAGE AGAIN!”

Feet thundered down the steps, fast as a rabbit. Jerome turned the corner and looked over the stair banister. His orange hair was a disheveled mess, and his shirt was wrinkled.

“I’m so sorry, mom!” he said “I don’t know how Sorel manages to keep getting out!”

The boy continued down the steps and went up to his mother, hand outstretched to take his snake back.

“Ah-ah-ah! What do you say?” The boy’s mother held the snake above her head, out of his reach.

“Oh, please, mom, not now, there’s a customer…” Jerome groaned.

His mom narrowed her eyes. Jerome gulped, and began singing.

  
"The snake belongs in its cage or mom gets in a rage.  
 Unlock the top and Mom’ll pop; so go relock the cage.”

 

Alya just stood there, taking this all in. The snake slithered down the mother’s outstretched arm to the red haired boy. His cheeks almost matched his hair as he looked at Alya’s watching gaze. He quickly turned and ran back upstairs, snake in hand. A soft latch was heard.

Alya’s eyes wandered back to the woman behind the counter. The woman rubbed her hands on her jeans.

“I’m terribly sorry about that, dear. My name is Augustine, what can I help you with?” she said with a smile.

“Uh, hi. My name’s Alya, and I saw that dress in the window and I was wondering how much it was.” She said

“Oh, that thing? It’s on sale right now, actually. Here.” Augustine handed Alya the sign, the price slashed down to promote the new, affordable cost.

“That’s great! I’d like to buy one, please.”

“Ok, dearie, will that be your size?” Augustine asked as she typed on the cash register.

Alya thought for a few seconds. “Yeah, that will work. It’s not for me, but the person I’m getting it for is about my size.”

The saleswoman rang her up and handed her a replica of the ladybug inspired dress. Alya thanked her for her time, and left the shop. The bell chimed softly behind her.

\-------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! ------------------------- 

In Jerome’s room, he huddled over his desk. Facedown in his arms, his homework and RPG figures scattered haphazardly. Sorel, his snake, watched expectantly from its cage. In his grip, a bag of 20-sided dice was held.

Jerome had always known he had bad luck, but today had been the absolute worst day in a long, long time. He didn’t even notice the black butterfly flapping in his window. It assimilated itself in to his bag as a voice rang out in his head.

“Dice Master,” the soothing voice said “I am Papillon. Your luck has made you unhappy, but all that is about to change. Now it is your turn to make everyone else’s day as unlucky as yours. All I ask is that you bring me Ladybug and Chat Noir’s Miraculous.”

Jerome grinned, looking up from the desk. “Let the games begin.” He agreed. Black and purple smoke bubbled all around his transforming body.

  
A deep, heavy laugh broke through the air as the walls exploded out ward.

  
A gigantic, monocular snake colored in purple, black and yellow slithered out of the house and on to the center of Paris.

 

\-------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! -------------------------  

Alya buzzed the doorbell.

Nothing happened.

She waited.

Just as she was about to press it again, one of the bricks on the gate slid up, revealing an electric eye.

Alya had seen this before, and remained unfazed. “Hello,” she greeted the eye “Is Adrien home?”

Natalie’s voice came through the speaker. “Yes. Is this a social or business call?”

“Um, both? We’re working on a project at school and he said I could come over so we could work on it.” Alya lied

“Funny,” said Natalie “Adrien didn’t mention a project. What subject is it?”

“Geography!” Alya nearly shouted the first thing that came in to her mind.

“I’ll let him know.” The eye slid back in to the wall.

\-------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! -------------------------

Natalie knocked on Adrien’s door. “Adrien,” she said “There’s someone from your class to see you. She said she was working on a project with you.”

The door opened. Adrien stepped out, nervously smiling. “Uh, yeah! We got a, uh, history project to work on!”

Natalie made no show of emotion. “I’ll let her in.” she said. Her father’s assistant turned

Adrien breathed a sigh of relief as soon as she was out of eyesight.

\-------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! -------------------------

 

Alya tapped her foot as she waited patiently. The bag she was holding with the dress in was starting to fell heavy on her arms. She shifted her stance. Slowly, the bronzed gates swung open.

“Adrien is waiting for you in his room. I will take you to him.” Natalie said over the speaker.

“Thank you, miss!” Alya said, and walked in to the mansion. Natalie was waiting for her at the base of the stairs. Her stoic expression shared no emotions.

“Um, hi. I don’t think I introduced myself,” greeted Alya “My name is Alya.” She held her hand out for a handshake.

Natalie took her hand in a small shake. “Charmed. My name is Natalie. Come, Adrien is this way.”

Alya followed Natalie up the stairs and down the hall to Adrien’s room. She knocked the door before opening it.

“Adrien, your friend is here.” Said Natalie.

 “Ah, hi, Alya! Thanks for coming over!” he said, giving a small hand wave. Alya grinned at the dork.

“Good luck on your geography project, Adrien.” Natalie said as she left, leaving the door open behind her. Adrien’s face paled in realization that Natalie knew he lied.

“She seems nice.” Said Alya, shaking Adrien out of his stupor.

“Ah, yeah, she is. She just tends to do whatever my father says. It is her job, though, so I can’t really blame her for that.”

Alya closed the door, but didn’t latch it shut completely.

“I brought you something.” She said, setting down the bag. “I just wanted to thank you for all the hard work you’ve done for Paris, and I saw this in a window and I thought you might like it.”

Adrien started protesting as he saw the red and black dress lifted out of the bag. “N-no, Alya, you really didn’t have to do that!” he said

“But I wanted to! And I think it would look cute on you!” Alya grinned. Adrien grimaced.

“D-do you not like it? Do you not like dresses?” Alya asked

Noticing that his friend was starting to feel bad, he apologized. “No, no! I’m sorry, it’s not that. Dresses are fine. It looks great. I just don’t like people giving me free things.”

Alya smiled. “Then think of it as an early birthday present.” She handed him the dress. “Now go on, try it! I want to see how it looks!”

Adrien held the fabric in his hands, looking down between it and the girl in his room. With a sigh, he walked in to his bathroom.

Within moments, his attire had changed from his usual jeans, t-shirt and jacket into a slimming red dress with black spots. He tousled his hair a little bit to get in to a more manageable look.

“How does it feel?” Alya asked on the other side of the door.

“The fabric’s nice. It’s very, ah, _breathy._ ” Adrien replied. He unlocked the bathroom door and walked out.

"Oh, Adrien!" exclaimed Alya "It looks so good on you!"

Adrien blushed. “Thanks, Alya.” He said

It’s no problem, dude.” She said. Alya’s phone vibrated in her pocket with a hard buzz. She opened it up.

“What is it?” Adrien asked

“It’s the news! There’s an akuma attack in the center of Paris right now!” Alya looked up from her phone.

“You need to go!” she said excitedly. She started to push Adrien back in to the bathroom so he could transform.

Suddenly, the newscaster’s voice came through on the phone.

“And it looks like Ladybug is on the scene! We’ll back away from the action a little bit, but know that we’ll be bringing you as much of the action as we can!”

Alya looked down at her phone, and sure enough, there was Ladybug, fighting a giant one-eyed snake in Central Paris.  
She looked up to Adrien, still blushing in his dress, and back down to her phone again.

"You really aren't Ladybug, are you?"

“Um, no. Sorry. I did try telling you…”

Alya smirked. “Well, it’s not like this is the first time I’ve gotten it wrong. At least I didn’t get akumatized this time.”

Adrien laughed. “Yeah, that’s definitely a plus. If you want, I can ask Gorilla to take you to the fight.” He said

“Really? Oh, thank you so much!” Alya hugged his neck.

“N-no problem, Alya!”

\-------------------------¡MIRACULOUS! -------------------------

Minutes later, Adrien watched from his room as the limo drove out of sight of the mansion.

“Good grief, I thought she would never leave!” said Plagg as he zoomed out of the cubby he was hiding in.

“She was only here for like, ten minutes. You’re just impatient.”

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s just go help Ladybug.” Plagg snarked

“Plagg, claws out!”

_I’m coming, LB. Just hold on._

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit to @AdrienThoughts's Tumblr account for the great art of Adrien in an LB dress that inspired a good portion of this chapter!


	5. In Which Chat Vows to Never Play Another RPG

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chat and Ladybug face off against a giant snake in the middle of France.

**Chapter 5**

**In Which Chat Vows to Never Play Another RPG**

 

**One Hour Earlier**

Marinette moaned in to her pillows. Facedown, she mumbled to Tikki.

“What was that, Marinette?” Tikki asked, floating above her head. Marinette rolled over on to her back.

“I said, I don’t feel good about Alya’s computer.”

“I’m sure it’ll be ok,” Tikki reassured her “It’s not like she knows you changed her notes.”

Marinette frowned “Yeah, but now she thinks someone is Ladybug who isn’t. And that’s not exactly fair to him, is it?”

Tikki sighed. “If you really feel guilty about it, we could go and change it back.”

Marinette nodded. “Tikki, spots on!”

Marinette, now clad as Paris’s super hero, Ladybug, walked out up to her balcony. Yo-yo in hand, she pulls her hand back to throw it towards Alya’s house. Before she does, screams of terror ring out from the opposite direction.

“Change of plans, Tikki. Looks like we got an Akuma to take care of.” Ladybug jumps off the balcony and swings towards the noise.

 

 

**\----------------¡MIRACULOUS!-----------------**

 

 

The basilisk behemoth towered over the citizens of Paris. Even with just one eye, it seemed to have no trouble seeing its way around the city and terrorizing innocent people. Hundreds of people were running from the destruction it was causing.

 

A mother and daughter hid beneath a car, shivering with fear. The daughter held a drawing of a four leaf clover in her hand.

 

A long, serpentine appendage slid under their car and lifted it off of them. The two of them looked up to see the giant snake holding their car in its tail above their head.

 

“It’ll be ok, honey. Ladybug will save us.”

 

The eye of the snake glared down at them.

 

“That’sssss what I am counting on,” It said “Ladybug and Chat Noir will meet their end by the Dice Master!”

Dice Master lunged down at the ground, mouth open wide to swallow the woman whole. His jaw is snapped shut by a piece of magic string wrapping around his mouth. A weight falls on to his back and tugs on the string, using them as artificial reins.

 

“Go, get out of here!” shouts Ladybug “Get safe!”

 

The massive snakes swung its head and body all over the place, smashing in to the sides of buildings with enough force to cause them to shake. Glass breaks in the windows, and cars are smashed left and right. Ladybug is having a hell of a time staying on. She does her best, but after a while, Dice Master gets the better of her.

 

Dice Master aims his back at a nearby apartment building. Ladybug sees what he’s doing and lets go of the reins, but it’s almost too late. She just barely misses getting crushed between the serpent and the wall.

 

Dice Master grabs a tire off the car he had lifted earlier with his tail and chucks it at Ladybug. The red super hero jumps over it, dodging it with ease.

 

Simultaneously, Dice Master reaches in to his dice bag and throws a single die at Ladybug’s landing form. The road around her bubbles and changes in an instant, becoming a pit of tar and molten asphalt. Fortunately for Ladybug, the suit protects her from getting burnt, but the heat is awful and it’s so sticky she can’t move. She goes to grab her Yo-yo when she realizes it’s still muzzling the massive snake.

 

Dice Master uses its tail to slide the string off of his mouth. “Niccccce of you to join me, Ladybug. Your luck isssss about to run out! I am Diccccce Master, and I am going to desssstroy you!”

 

Ladybug struggled against the tar, ankles stuck quick and sinking fast. Without any way to move her feet to reposition herself, she falls forward, face first in the tar. She puts her arms out and manages to stop herself from getting her face in the black muck, but she’s still sinking.

 

A metal shaft shoves her out of the tar and on to the sidewalk. Ladybug looks up to her left to see Chat Noir and his staff.

“Nice of you to join me, Kitty!”

“Well, I couldn’t let my favorite bug turn to jelly, could I?” he grinned.

The two of them pose in their hero stance to face the Dice Master.

“Ah, two playerssss! Good, this is going to be much more fun!”

 

The monocular basilisk hurls a frenzy of dice at the pair. As the pair dodge, the city landscape begins to change. What was a trashcan and light post, is now a thirty-foot tree with bugs and vines. What once was a part of a sidewalk, is now full of massive man-eating plants. Lava flows from where manhole covers once were, and spikes line both the ground and some building walls. The area is quickly over flowing with flora as it turns in to a dangerous jungle before their eyes.

 

“When my dad said that the city is a jungle, I didn’t think he meant it literally!” Chat Noir shouted at Ladybug

 

A large die, about the size of a fist, is thrown past the two of them. Metal groans and moans, organic tissue bubbling from the steel it once held. Chat and Ladybug turned to see a blue SUV finish transforming into an impressive steel and flesh ogre.

 

 **“ROOOOOAAAARRRRR!”** The force of the beast’s roar blows them back a few inches.

“Come on, my Lady! Let’s get this _Ogre_ with!” Chat yells, as he dodges the ogre’s fist.

 

“Right!” Ladybug yells back. She looks for a place to get out of the way for a second. A few trees catch her eye, and she zooms up to the top canopy layer.

She grabs a branch above her, and steadies her feet on the moss-covered branch below. The three-foot branch holds her wait with little give.

 

“LUCKY CHARM!” she shouts, casting her yo-yo in to the air. The red and black spotted object falls in to her waiting hands.

“A ping pong paddle? I’m not sure how good a giant snake is at Table Tennis…” Ladybug grumbles.

She scans the area, looking for a way to beat the Dice Master. Chat is still dodging the steel ogre, while also doing his best to get a hit in every now and again. The Dice Master is still throwing the dice around the city, transforming more and more of the city jungle into a literal jungle.

_Dice bag, Paddle, Chat._

Ladybug realizes what she has to do. She uses her yo-yo to drop down to the forest floor.

“Chat!” she yells, “Get ready!”

“I’m always ready!” he yells back with his usual cockiness.

Ladybug swings over in front of the Dice Master. The giant snake looms over her.

“Hey! Down here, you worm!” she shouts heartily. The monocular basilisk beams its eye down upon her.

 

“LADYBUG!” it sneers, “Time to _die!”_ The tail reaches in to the bag around its neck, and in one swift motion, picks one die out of the bag and flings it towards her at high speed.

Ladybug gets in to a battle stance, ping pong paddle ready in her right hand. She swings at just the right moment!

 

The die ricochets off the paddle with continued velocity, streaming through the trees and vines to land on her partner’s back. The die, imbued with the dark magic of true bad luck, negates with Chat Noir’s natural bad luck. The leather on Chat’s suit turns in to a steel white as he grows ten feet on top of his normal height.

Chat kicks the ogre car and jumps over to the monocular basilisk. In one swift movement, he punches the stomach of the beast with his stick. Air in the snake’s lungs exits in a violent gasp, and Chat takes the opportunity to grab the die bag. He throws it down below to his lady in waiting.

 

“Thanks, Chat!” She yells up to him. Chat just winks and gives a thumb up.

She breaks the bag, ripping it in two down the middle. A dark purple butterfly bolts from the bag, trying to escape the girl’s wrath as soon as it can. It’s too late, though, as the yo-yo traps it like a vice.

 

“I’m freeing you from evil!” Ladybug yells, swinging her yo-yo until the Akuma is no more.

“Bye-bye, pretty butterfly!” she says as the whitened butterfly flutters softly away.

She tosses her ladybug themed paddle in to the sky, just barely reaching the canopy level.

“MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!” She shouts, and the paddle explodes outwards.

 

The city returns back to normal. The trees vanish in an instant, Chat turns back to his normal height and color, the Ogre Car turns back in to a blue SUV, and the snake is revealed to be a teen with orange hair and crinkled shirt, laying on his side in the middle of the road.

Chat hops over to Ladybug. “Pound it!” they exclaim together with a happy fist bump.

 

Ladybug walks over to Jerome, bag in hand. She kneels down on her knees, and puts the bag in his hand. “I don’t know what you’re going through right now, but I promise that you’re not the only one that is dealt a bad hand. Everyone has bad days.”

The boy looks up to her, eyes wide and misty. He hugs her neck.

“Thank you, Ladybug.” He says softly. Ladybug pats his back.

 

She stands up and walks back over to her partner. Her expression changes from comfort to concern.

 “Hey, Chat?” she asks “How’s it going with the person who thinks she knows your identity?”

Chat just grins. “It’s cool, now, my lady. She realized she must have had some notes wrong or something. No problems there!”

Ladybug sighs in relief. “That’s good to hear. I’d hate for either of our identities to get exposed. Hawkmoth is too much of an unknown to trust anyone.”

 

Chat nods in understanding. Ladybug’s earrings begin beeping frantically.

“Until next time, bugaboo!” Chat says with a grin, and pole vaults over the apartments.

Ladybug swings with her yo-yo in the opposite direction.

 

 

**\----------------¡MIRACULOUS!-----------------**

 

 

Marinette lands on her roof with a soft thud. She releases the transformation, and Tikki flies out of her earrings to land in her palms.

“See, Marinette? Everything worked out fine!” the little kwami smiles

“We got lucky this time, Tikki. I’m not doing something like that again.” Marinette says firmly.

Tikki nods. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea. I’m sorry I suggested tweaking Alya’s stuff. I may be thousands of years old, but even I make mistakes sometimes!”

Marinette smiles encouragingly. “It’s ok, Tikki. You were just trying to help.”

The kwami floats up to Marinette and hugs her cheek. The two of them smile, together.

 

 

**\----------------¡MIRACULOUS!-----------------**

The glow of the moon gently lit Adrien's room. The red LED clock read 11:42. 

Adrien stared at the clock as it slowly ticked the minutes away.

11:43.

11:44.

11:45.

Finally, Adrien had had enough. He got out of bed and walked to his closet, making sure not to turn on any lights for fear of getting caught. Thankfully, his closet was a walk-in, so he could close the door and turn the lights on inside.

Adrien walked to the back of the (admittedly spacious) closet and kneeled in front of a waist-high dresser. Slowly, with ease and little noise, he opened the bottom drawer. Moving a few clothes to the side, he pulled out the red and black spotted fabric that Alya had given him.

A quiet shuffling of fabric, and he was clad in the soft texture again. He swished around, loving the feel of it on his knees and stomach. His arms seemed barer, more naked than usual. The v neck where a bust would be opened enough skin to send a light chill through his chest.

Adrien turned and looked at his door-mounted full length mirror. Maybe it was a trick of the light, but his smile seemed just a little bit wider. He felt… good.

Perhaps it was a good thing that Alya thought he was Ladybug, even if for a short while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOTES
> 
> 1\. Is Adrien Trans? Is he just a closet crossdresser? Honestly, I don't know myself. I like either interpretation, honestly, so I'll leave it up to what you think.
> 
> 2\. About halfway through writing this, I drastically changed the direction I wanted this story to go. At first, it was just going to be a funny short with maybe some wacky hijinks. I realized, after finishing chapter 2, that I wasn't going to be able to write something like that while also being serious. So I opted for a different route - episode-like.
> 
> I'm hoping this whole story feels like an episode you could watch, or at least close to it. Commercial breaks would probably between chapters 2 & 3 and chapters 4 & 5\. The ending would definitely be different in-show, but I wanted to bring back some of the humor from the first few chapters.
> 
> 3\. This is my first multi-chapter story that I've written AND finished in over 4 years. Last time I wrote a multi-chapter fic that I managed to finish was in tenth grade. Boy howdy.
> 
> 4\. Now, like I've said, I personally consider this to be the end of the story itself. BUT since a lot of you are adamant about it and like identity reveal stories (I'm a sucker for them too, and I think I've got a decent way to do so) the next two chapters are going to be the aftermath of this and a realization between our two French heroes.


	6. In which Alya speaks before she thinks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya has a big mouth. Thankfully, the only two who realized are our heroes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. Quick note, if you've read this chapter already, I added quite a bit more. I was going to put their conversation in a separate chapter, but I just couldn't make it long enough to warrant an entire chapter to it. This is officially the final chapter, I am done with this story, my muse was straining just to think of the dialogue here.
> 
> It's done. Over. Finis.

**Chapter 6**

**In which Alya speaks before she thinks (Bonus Chapter)**

Marinette sat behind her desk, waiting for the school day to begin. She chatted eagerly with her best friend, Alya, who was currently seated with crossed legs atop of her desk. Gossip lingered on both of their lips, inside jokes causing the two of them to laugh heartedly. A few more students walked in, gave them an odd look, and sat down. Ten minutes to bell.

Chloe walked in. Words were exchanged in a usual banter. Marinette’s previous good mood disappeared in a huff at the indignant blonde. (Marinette had a sneaking suspicion Chloe’s hair was not naturally that yellow, but she put off comments for fear of retribution). Alya sat down in to her chair, and patted Marinette softly on the back.

Five minutes to bell.

Kim walked in. Then Alix. Nathaniel walked close to the wall to the pencil sharpener, trying his hardest not to be seen.

BZZZZZZZ. ZZZZ. ZZZZZZZuh.

He walked hurriedly back to his desk.

Marinette’s chin rested on her desk the whole time.

Two minutes to bell.

Nino and Adrien walked in. Adrien seemed a little happier than normal – a slight glint in his eye, his smile turned up just a hair more. His hair didn’t seem as messy, like he had taken extra care in combing it. Nino made another joke, to which Adrien replied with a grin and a slug to the arm.

“Hey, boys!” Alya called them over

“ ’Sup, Alya?” Said Nino, fist bump at the ready. A small thwup as their knuckles collided.

“Not much. Got some _great_ video of the akuma yesterday. Ladybug and Chat Noir were as amazing as ever.” Alya replied

Adrien grinned “Yeah, those two are pretty great, aren’t they?”

Marinette nodded, wanting to contribute to the conversation while also knowing she’d just blabber all over the place while Adrien was there.

Alya side-glanced at her friend and smirked. “Yeah, they are. Speaking of which, Adrien?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m really sorry for thinking you were Ladybug. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions before triple checking my notes.”

Nino slapped Adrien on the back with a mighty laugh. “Oh, that is too good! You, as Ladybug!? What I wouldn’t pay to see THAT!”

Adrien rolled his eyes. His hair fell in his eyes a bit, and he brushed it out of the way with his hand. His attention was brought to Marinette, who just stood their pale faced and wide eyed. Which, granted, was not _unusual_ as he had seen her do this many times before, usually around him. He could never fathom why.

No, what made this different was what her eyes were staring _at._ They didn’t seem fixated on his face, but rather, his hand.

His right hand.

His ring …hand…

 

One minute to bell.

 

He looked back up from his hand on the table to her face.

Slowly, discreetly, Marinette moved her bangs out of her eyes. Her hand continued moving through her hair, moving it away from her right ear for just a few seconds.

More than enough time for Adrien to see the earrings of his Lady on the girl behind him. Time enough for all the air in the world to leave him.

Neither moved. Neither spoke. Neither dared breathe.

BBBBBBRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG!

The bell rang, ferocious and loud, signaling the beginning of the school day. Their professor walked in, syllabus in her hand.

“Bathroom!” shouted Marinette

“I’m not feeling very well!” Adrien said loudly

Alya, Nino, and the rest of the class just watched as the blond boy and bluenette girl ran out of the classroom together.

After a minute, Kim broke the silence.

“Ok, that was weird, right?”

 

**\---------------MIRACULOUS!------------------**

 

 

Marinette ran down the hall towards the gymnasium. Adrien ran after her.

“Hey, wait up!” he called to her.

They rounded a corner, where a broom closet had been left ajar. Marinette grabbed Adrien’s arm and dragged him inside, latching the door shut behind them.

The room was small. Even with their backs as far against the shelves as they could be, their toes were still touching. The dim bulb flickered overhead. Marinette made a mental note to get the school’s janitor a new lightbulb for the fixture.

The two teenagers stared at each other, disbelief settling on their faces, followed quickly by a heated blush on Marinette.

 

“Just to be clear, Marinette… you’re Ladybug, right?” Adrien asked

Marinette nodded. “And you- you’re Chat Noir?”

 

 “Yep! The one and only!” Adrien began to grin, but noticing Marinette’s nervousness, stopped. “You’re not… disappointed, are you?”

 

“W-what!? Why would I you be in disappointed? I mean, why would I be disappointed in you?” she stammered

 

Adrien sighed. “Because of that. Every time I try to talk to you, or just wave, you get all stammer and nervous. What gives?”

 

Marinette was silent. She couldn’t just outright say she had a crush on him, she just wasn’t ready yet. It was better to be friends first, to get over her fangirling around him before she tried actually asking him out.

“Well, you’re kind of the son of one of my favorite designers, and all over fashion catalogues. Can you blame me for being a little nervous?” By now, Marinette was no longer blushing.

 

Adrien sighed. “Sometimes I wish I wasn’t.”

 

Marinette looked at him, confused, waiting for him to continue.

 

“The house is nice, and I have everything I could want, and it’s great, really. But sometimes, I wish I could just be me, you know? Not what everyone thinks I am - what my Father wants me to be.”

 

Marintte grabbed his hand and held it gently.

 

“And there are … days. After a long battle. After getting poisoned, or trapped, or hurt and not being able to help you or even _hurting you –_ when the dust settles, and everything’s back to normal but the memories of what happened are _still there…_ ”

“There are days when I really, really miss my mom.”

 

Adrien looked at his feet, putting on his best façade. Marinette’s eyes were wide with concern, and before she knew it, she was holding him in a hug. Adrien’s head leaned on her shoulder, like crutches to his mental anguish.

“You’re not alone, Kitty. I am always here to listen.” She whispered.

 

The lightbulb flickered, like lightning in a storm.

 

“…Thank you, My Lady.”


End file.
